According to a report from the NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero and ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Los Angeles Rams and Cleveland Browns are finalizing a trade that will ship two-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year and seven-time Pro-Bowl defensive end Myles Garrett to the Rams for two-time Pro-Bowl DE Jared Verse, a 2027 first-round draft pick and other draft compensation that’s yet to be determined.
This is a shocking move, one that certainly indicates that the Rams are “all-in” on the 2026 season that could be star quarterback Matthew Stafford’s last in the NFL. The organization made similar moves prior to the 2021 campaign that resulted in a 23-20 win over the Bengals in Super Bowl LVI at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, CA.
SoFi, the Rams’ home stadium, will host Super Bowl LXI this season, and Sean McVay’s team is planning on being there again. Stafford will turn 39 a week before the game that’s scheduled for Valentine’s Day.
Garrett played in all 17 regular-season games for Cleveland in 2025, producing 60 tackles, 39 QB Hits, 33 tackles for loss, 23 sacks, three forced fumbles and one pass broken up. He led the NFL in both TFL’s and sacks and garnered NFL Defensive Player of the Year honors.
The 30-year-old Garrett is entering his 10th career season, but he’s shown zero signs of slowing down. He’s missed only three regular-season games in the last five years.
Garett has played in 134 career regular-season games, recording 412 tackles, 239 QB Hits, 149 TFL’s, 125.5 sacks, 23 forced fumbles, 18 PBU, six fumble recoveries and one scoop-and-score for a touchdown. His 125.5 sacks are the third-most among active players and ranks #28 in NFL history.
Cleveland has only made the playoffs twice during Garrett’s career. In 2020, he had three tackles, two QB Hits, one TFL and one sack in two postseason games.
Garrett had three tackles in a 45-14 loss at Houston in the 2023 playoffs.
The 25-year-old Verse was the Rams’ first-round pick with the #19 overall selection in the 2024 NFL Draft. He was named the Associated Press’s Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2024, producing 66 tackles, 18 QB Hits, 11 TFL’s, 4.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and a pair of PBU.
In two postseason games as a rookie, Verse had six tackles, three TFL’s, two QB Hits, two sacks and one fumble recovery that he returned 57 yards for a TD.
Verse played in all 17 regular-season contests last year, compiling 58 tackles, 27 QB Hits, 11 TFL’s, 7.5 sacks, three forced fumbles and one PBU. In three playoff games, he had seven tackles, seven QB Hits, three TFL’s and one sack.
As of this morning before the trade was reported, most books already had the Rams as +800 ‘chalk’ to win Super Bowl LXI. As of 2:25 p.m. Eastern, FanDuel had the Rams as +550 favorites.
The next-shortest odds belong to the Ravens (+1000 or 10/1), the Bills (10/1) and the Seahawks (11/1).
FanDuel has the Rams as +100 favorites to win the NFC West division, with Seattle at +200 odds. The 49ers are at +300.